Topic Area B: Freight Transport and Logistics

Topic Area B includes freight carried by all modes of transport, with a strong focus on the way in which freight modes are integrated, and in particular, the importance of intermodal transport and the relationship between freight transport and logistics management. Themes concerned with spatial aspects at many different levels are also included, from global freight and logistics networks to the challenges of urban freight and city logistics. The contribution of freight modelling to decision-making and policy development, the application of ITS and the growing importance of humanitarian logistics are also part of the topic area. Environmental issues and the theme of sustainability are now of major relevance to many fields of freight transport and logistics. Papers concerned with sustainability and environmental issues will be allocated to session tracks in line with the main focus of the paper.

SIG B1 – Logistics and Freight Transport Operations

Objectives

SIG B1 focus on research connecting logistics and freight transport operations as logistics management has significant impacts on transport operations. It addresses issues at local, regional, national or global levels and covers any industrial sectors, across different transportation modes and includes the use of ITS in freight transport operations.

Background

SIG B1 research activities mainly relate to inter-disciplinary scientific approaches enlarging the scope of transport research to the wider framework of logistics and transport management. The concept of logistics is perceived through a large approach, including all methods and processes aiming at coordinating and optimizing the flows of goods, information and capital along the whole supply chain: from the supply of raw materials to the delivery of final products. Therefore, SIG B1 activities focus on various interrelationships between production systems, supply chain strategies and organization of freight transport systems. The impact of logistics systems and supply chain management strategies on freight transport at the levels of strategy, management and operations is particularly considered. The evolution of logistics concepts during the last decades, from the simply physical handling of goods to the development of managerial tools coordinating demand and supply sequences, has significantly influenced the development of freight transport systems. New requirements from demand side have significant impact on strategies, flow patterns and transport operational solutions. The transport and logistics market structure currently knows profound changes. A new generation of logistics actors has emerged, with the development of new professions, activities and added value concepts. Logistics-related innovation is a driver for new developments. Many logistics innovations have significant impacts on transport operations as requirements of speed, reliability, flexibility and costs must be considered in order to fulfil the customers’ needs. The rise of just-in-time supply systems and the importance of increasingly agile supply chains, combined with the new requirements for sustainable solutions, lead to new developments and show the importance of collaboration between transport users and transport operators in order to find solutions fulfilling sustainability objectives. The development of global supply chain networks, changes in off-shoring arrangements, the significance of developments in manufacturing techniques such as 3D printing all have implications for freight transport. Research may address issues at local, national, regional or global levels and may focus on specific sectors.

At the same time, the field of logistics is being increasingly introduced in the political agenda at various levels: local, national, international. Logistics policies are recognised as a strategic tool, able to face with new concerns related to environmental protection and sustainable growth. Decoupling growth from traffic is a new challenge, where logistics can play an efficient role. Policies creating favourable conditions for stimulating sustainable transport and logistics practices are of crucial importance. These can affect location strategies, modal choices and intermodal solutions. More generally, outsourcing practices, consolidation techniques, new locations, developments of new hubs, Freight Villages and Distribution Centres can be seen as results of interactions between logistics policies and operators’ strategies. Investigation in the aforementioned issues also is in the heart of SIG B1 research field.

Members

SIG B2 – Humanitarian Logistics in Disasters

Objectives

Promoting researches on humanitarian logistics in disasters to plan relief supply distribution, to prepare adequate resources for providing goods to people in affected areas before disasters, and to perform appropriate crisis management after disasters

Organising dedicated sessions on humanitarian logistics in WCTR conference as well as workshops and group meetings for carrying out the high quality researches and exchanging ideas and experience in this field

Promoting Developing links between WCTRS and other organisations including TRB, TRA, EASTS, and World Bank

Background

The proposal of this SIG was presented after the WCTR 13 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2013). The SIG is intending to hold its first special session in the forthcoming WCTR 14 at Shanghai, China (2016).

Activities

Firstly SIG “Humanitarian logistics in disasters” will organise international workshops to exchange ideas and experience in relief supply distribution in disasters. Although there are some similarities between SIG “Humanitarian logistics in disasters” and SIG ”Urban goods movement”, SIG “Humanitarian logistics in disasters” focuses on freight transport and logistics systems in disasters and SIG ”Urban goods movement” addresses freight transport and logistics systems in normal conditions and pay more attention to environmental issues. Another SIG “Disaster Resilience in Transport” focuses on transport and land use, and transport network resilience in disasters, whereas SIG “Humanitarian logistics in disasters” focuses on freight transport and logistics systems in disasters, which is different from the topics in another SIG.

Secondly SIG “Humanitarian logistics in disasters” will organise dedicated sessions to humanitarian logistics in later WCTR conferences (starting from the WCTR 14) and aim to hold special sessions in other high-level international or regional conferences.

The SIG will also seek for opportunities to promote collaboration and cooperation among WCTRS, government administration and practitioners from all over the world.

Membership

The SIG will be led by Prof. Eiichi Taniguchi, Kyoto University, Japan and Associate Professor Russell G. Thompson, The University of Melbourne, Australia. Prof Eiichi Taniguchi is currently the chairman of Infrastructure Planning Committee of Japan Society of Civil Engineers and takes lead of a lot of research projects in humanitarian logistics and city logistics in the world. Associate Professor Russell G. Thompson is a member of Disaster Management Research Centre in the University of Melbourne and very active in modelling freight transport area.

The membership is open to all academic, researchers, practitioners, policy makers who are interested in the Humanitarian Logistics.

Members

(The full membership list for this SIG is maintained by the SIG Chair/Co-chair)

SIG B3 – Intermodal Freight Transport

Objectives

Topic Area B Freight includes freight carried by all modes of transport with a strong focus on the way in which freight modes are integrated – in particular the importance of intermodal transport and the relationship between freight transport and logistics management. Themes concerned with spatial aspects at many different levels are also included from global freight and logistics networks to the challenges of urban freight and city logistics. The contribution of freight modelling to decision-making and policy development, the application of intelligent transportation systems (ITS) and the growing importance of humanitarian logistics are also part of the Topic Area. Environmental issues and the theme of sustainability are now of major relevance to many fields of freight transport and logistics. Therefore rather than having a separate session track dealing with this theme, within Topic Area B, papers concerned with sustainability and environmental issues will be allocated to Session Tracks in line with the main focus of the paper.

Background

Intermodal Freight Transport has a long history as session track at the WCTR and has developed into a community with a core of regularly attending researchers. The SIG was launched on 1 August 2014.

The scope of the SIG is identical to the session track B3 Intermodal Freight Transport. All transport services with combinations of traffic modes and specific parts such as port hinterland transport and pre- and post haulage are addressed. Issues include intermodal governance, decision-making, information flows, synchronisation, performance and methodological issues as well as green corridors, strategic networks and case studies evaluating intermodal services and projects with a national or regional dimension that reflect differences in intermodal markets around the world.

SIG B3 follows the tradition from the SIGs established earlier and will arrange meetings, edit special issues, coordinate with other scientific communities, foster research with new author constellations and bridge the gap between research and industry. The intention is to activate researchers in the intermodal freight transport field also between the WCTRs. As several of the founding members are members of other SIGs based on overlapping research interests, cooperation between SIGs will be fostered.

Activities

Current:Intermodal Freight Transport Meeting at the 4th ICPLT

The Special Interest Group B3 on Intermodal Freight Transport will be holding a SIG meeting at the Interdisciplinary Conference on Production, Logistics and Traffic in Dortmund.

Previous:As of July 2017, SIG B3 had already attracted more than 50 members from research and industry worldwide and further seeks to expand its member base.

In the past years SIG B3 realised several activities regarding the publication of research findings and fostering cooperation with various research organisations. One of the first activities of SIG B3 was that Cathy Macharis, Sandra Melo, Tom van Lier and Johan Woxenius edited a book on Sustainable logistics in Emerald’s Sustainable transport series. It was published in December 2014 and includes several papers from the 13th WCTR in Rio de Janeiro. Later, Michael Browne, Allan Woodburn and Johan Woxenius co-edited a themed volume in Research in Transportation Business and Management (RTBM) on Intermodal Freight Transport. In 2015 Jason Monios and Rickard Bergqvist also edited a volume on “Operational constraints on effective governance of intermodal transport” in RTBM. To facilitate journal publication of papers after the 14th WCTR in Shanghai, SIG B3 has worked together with RTBM on a special issue on Intermodal freight transport management containing papers from the session track B, which has been published in June 2017. Future activities in this context aim to continue the tradition of special issues in journals and edited books.

Regarding cooperation with other research communities, SIG B3 established close ties with the NECTAR (www.nectar.eu.org) Cluster 3 on Freight and logistics, which was launched by Cathy Macharis, Johan Woxenius, Sandra Melo and Anne Goodchild, who have also been among the founding members of SIG B3. NECTAR Cluster 3 has a long history of arranging targeted conferences and meetings on intermodal transport research and NECTAR as a whole arranges larger conferences. The cluster has also edited a number of special issues and book volumes focusing intermodal freight transport based on conference submissions. The activities in NECTAR Cluster 3 and WCTRSSIG B3 will be coordinated.

There is also an intention to coordinate activities with TRB’s Intermodal Freight Committee co-chaired by Anne Goodchild and with the International Association of Maritime Economists (IAME), particularly in the field of hinterland transport.

In Germany, SIG B3 established connections with the Studiengesellschaft für Kombinierten Verkehr (German Research Association for Intermodal Transport, website in German: http://www.sgkv.de/) and events in association with the German Bundesverband Materialwirtschaft Einkauf und Logistik e.V. (Association for Materials Management Purchasing and Logistics e. V.) are considered.

Membership

Membership is open to any researchers, industry managers, executives and policy makers with research interest in the subject area. Anyone interested in joining is invited to contact Ralf Elbert or Jason Monios. Suggestions for SIG activities are always welcome.

(The full membership list for this SIG is maintained by the SIG Chair/Co-chair)

SIG B4 – Urban Goods Movement

Objectives

Its principal objectives are to:

share knowledge and ideas on an international level concerning developments in urban goods movement – including planning, policy, operations, modelling and data collection

contribute to research activities in the field of urban goods movement

encourage the development of new research techniques concerned with urban goods movement

support a network of researchers concerned with this topic

develop links with other networks concerning urban freight and city logistics

These objectives will be reviewed and expanded from time to time in light of SIG members’ interests.

Background

This SIG was launched following the 7th WCTR Conference in Sydney. The focus is on urban goods movement, city freight developments and urban logistics.
Prof. Ken Ogden was chair of the SIG from its inception until 2000 when the role was taken on by Prof. Michael Browne. Since the inception of the SIG interest in the topic has grown significantly and there are now a number of active groups and networks working in this area. In 2008 Prof. Toshinori Nemoto became co-chair of the SIG in order to contribute to further development and enhance international coverage.

Activities

Very successful track sessions were held at the 8th, 9th and 10th WCTR Conference in Antwerp, Seoul and Istanbul. Members of the SIG have also contributed to other initiatives such as the OECD Report on Urban Goods Movement. The SIG sponsored a track at the 11th World Conference in Berkeley 2007.

The SIG has developed a newsletter that is available to all members and is also circulated more widely.

Membership

Membership is open to any academic or practitioner with an interest in the subject area. Anyone interested in joining is invited to contact Michael Browne or Toshinori Nemoto at the addresses below. Suggestions for SIG activities are always welcome.

(The full membership list for this SIG is maintained by the SIG Chair/Co-chair)

SIG B5 – Freight Transport Modelling

Objectives

The SIG aims to support the sharing and discussion of the latest advances in mathematical models in the area of freight transportation. The focus is on models for use in transport policy making. This can include descriptive models for freight and trip generation, economy and trade, inventory and facility location, mode and vehicle/vessel type choice or routing and scheduling. In addition, optimization oriented models that support the design and improvement of policies in the area of infrastructure network design, network management, pricing and regulation fall within our scope. Research on normative models for the solution of strategic, tactical and operational decision problems in supply chain management is relevant if it can demonstrate a linkage with the above mentioned policy oriented models. Various strands of theory and practice are invited, including econometric modelling, simulation or applications like serious gaming. The geographical scope of models ranges between the city and the global scale.

Background

After a special session on freight modelling on the WCTR 2010 in Lisbon and a session track of freight modelling in Rio de Janeiro in 2013, a proposal for creating a SIG on Freight Modelling was accepted during the WCTRS Steering Group meeting in January 2014.